SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — Break out the hot dogs and marshmallows because the City of Summerside might be hosting the mother of all bonfires.
The city is considering its options as to how to deal with the massive amount of wood debris hurricane Dorian left in its wake and one of the options is to have a series of controlled burns.
In the days that followed the hurricane’s passing in early September, the city opened a drop off location for downed trees and branches near its wind farm in St. Eleanors.
Since then the pile has grown to cover about three-quarters of an acre and is about 20 feet high.
Coun. Carrie Adams asked for an update this week on the situation during Tuesday's council committee meetings. She pointed out that there are a number of provincial facilities in the city that are heated with wood chip biomass and wondered if the wood debris could be used there.
“If it’s not something that we or the province can use, can’t chip it – what’s the process here?,” asked Adams.
Greg Gaudet, the city’s director of municipal affairs, said burning the debris is not the only option on the table.
A company that specializes in using biomass (including wood chips) to heat buildings was scheduled to take a look at the pile this week and decide if it was interested in acquiring the waste.
“The first foray into it is to see if there is any value in it for them to do it, and see if they can be environmentally conscious to use some of the material for another use, put it to good use,” said Gaudet.
But it’s not as simple as it sounds, he said.
Often these biomass companies are not interested in storm debris because the wood tends to be mixed with mud and some non-organic material. Dirty wood doesn’t tend to chip well and can dull or even break chipping blades.
The city also can’t just bury the pile due to environmental concerns, specifically regarding the potential spread of Dutch elm disease. Any diseased wood would have to be separated before the pile could be buried and, given that none of it was sorted beforehand, it would be time-consuming to do that.
Despite these challenges, though the city is still considering all its options, said Gaudet.
In the meantime, residents can still drop off wood debris at the site, which is off the Compton Road. It will be open to the public from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays and Wednesdays, until the end of October.
Any resident of the city who still needs curb-side pickup of debris is now asked to call and register with the city’s municipal services department. The number is 902-432-1268. Curb-side pickups will continue on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at registered addresses only.
